Finding Fault

And when they saw some of his disciples eat bread with defiled, that is to say, with unwashen hands, they found fault.  Mark 7:2

To find fault, you have to go looking for it.  

The Pharisee's followed Jesus for one main reason; to find fault.  They constantly wanted to find reasons to accuse Him for something, and when they couldn't find fault in Jesus, they started looking for fault in those who followed Him.

Fault is actually easy to find.

When you are discontent in your own life, it will cause you to start looking at someone else's life.   

Finding faults is easy when you are unhappy, jealous, envious and bitter.  If I catch myself finding fault in others, it's usually because I have a huge problem in my own heart that I have not quite dealt with yet.

Jesus warns us against this very thing in Luke 6:42. He says, "And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but perceivest not the beam that is in thine own eye."

I will confess, usually when I find a fault in someone else, if I look close enough, I will find that same fault in me.

When we start fault-finding in others we need to:

    1-Examine our own hearts.  If we don't, we will be too quick to judge others for the same thing we are doing.  

    2-Instead of accusing that person of a fault, remember Galatians 6:1:  "Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted." 

We already have an Accuser:  Satan.  We don't need to be like him, we need to be like Christ.

Harriet Beecher Stowe once said, "Let us resolve: first to attain the grace of silence; second, to deem all fault finding that does no good a sin; third, to practice the grade and virtue of praise.

Finding faults can become a bad habit; instead, 

    Train yourself to find a blessing in everything, and everyone-

        But that's just me!

"Nothing is easier than fault finding."  Og Mandino

"We cannot improve any human relationship by insisting others do what they should, only by doing what we should."  Growth Principle from DITW Dr. Paul Chappell